Leaving a Legacy

December brings the joyous holiday season and nights beside the fireplace, preferably with a hot cup of coffee, tea or cocoa, and perhaps a favorite magazine or good book.

This month, our “Leaving a Legacy” issue offers a chance to ponder what you might want your legacy to be as another year draws to a close. From financial planning to starting a personal genealogy journey with the introduction of a new column, we hope the subject piques your interest.

Special thanks to Kasia McDaniel who helped set the holiday table for this month’s cover, which lets us explore the value of a family dinner and its many benefits, aside from cranberry sauce and dressing, my personal holiday favorites.

‘Tis the season of gift giving, so we’ll introduce you to one grandfather with a passion for creating lasting memories with his granddaughters.

We also highlight some dedicated hospital volunteers who work harder than Santa’s elves to ensure every child receives a handmade stuffed toy to make their hospital visit a little less scary and something to smile about.

If anything lives on, it’s music. For our Carolina Conversations this month, we sit down with singer-songwriter Craig Fuller, the former lead singer of the band Pure Prairie League, to talk about music and his Second 50 goal of guiding his son, Patrick’s, musical career.

Our yearlong salute to World War II veterans concludes this month with Clayton Harris, a Montgomery County native, who served in the Signal Corps in China until V-J Day. Sadly, Mr. Harris passed away last month prior to the release of this publication, so it is with our deepest condolences to the Harris family, we honor him this month. This series has touched many, so my sincere thanks and gratitude go to these 12 veterans, as well as writer Jonathan Scott and photographers— Katherine Clark, Diana Matthews and Mollie Tobias—for traveling across the region to bring these tribute stories to life.

As always, this issue is packed with information to help you age with success, from keeping hydrated for better brain health, to ideas for staying connected to family if staying home for the holidays is your plan.

Thank you for turning these pages again with us! We wish you and yours tidings of joy for this season and a very Happy New Year! Co-editor Jeeves is ready to cuddle and call 2017 a wrap. Until next year…